


Aches and Pains (and the things that make them better)

by TheCrowMaiden



Category: Lupin III
Genre: Adding thoughts to the one movie scene from Lupin III: The First, Gen, Intended as Gen but could be shippy, Kinda, Other, POV Jigen Daisuke, Platonic Cuddling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27883537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheCrowMaiden/pseuds/TheCrowMaiden
Summary: Jigen's knees aren't in the best shape, and when they all get tied up in a cold stone chamber he has a hard time ignoring the pain. But that's what friends are for.(Also known as a little explanation for why Jigen sits the way he does in that one scene in the Eclipse chamber in the Lupin III: The First movie. Mild spoilers!)
Relationships: Arsène Lupin III & Everyone, Ishikawa Goemon XIII & Jigen Daisuke, Jigen Daisuke & Arsène Lupin III
Comments: 6
Kudos: 51





	Aches and Pains (and the things that make them better)

As soon as the Nazi goons shoved Jigen down in the Eclipse chamber, his knee started to ache.

Too many years cramped up in the tiny Fiat was the problem. As much as he loved the thing, it was like a yellow sardine can with wheels; right down to the fold-back roof. Then there was all the sleeping outdoors in the cold, running for his life, and jumping around like no man his age ought to. The injuries that usually went with those activities really piled up after a while. Not to mention all the times they’d had to literally hit the dirt, and _hard_. What was someone like him doing running across rooftops, anyway? It was all fine and well for Goemon and Lupin to go flying through the air. But not Jigen. He was a marksman, not a gymnast for Christ’s sake.

And fine, maybe his shit posture had something to do with it too—all that slouching and never enough stretching. He couldn’t even count all the times he’d given someone a shock by standing to his full height. A chiropractor passing him on the street had actually damn near had a fit once, pressing their card into Jigen’s hands so he could call them for an appointment and imploring him to straighten his back in the mean time. The card was still folded at the bottom of his pocket, worn blank and useless apart from the occasional twinge of guilt that had Jigen pressing his shoulder blades against the car seat for a change.

But whatever the reason, be it the car or not, his knee still hurt like goddamn hell when he had to sit cross-legged.

It was one thing when it was for a quick meal of instant ramen, using a cardboard box as a table in a warm and enclosed helicopter—or for any of the brief moments during a heist when it was just the simplest way to sit. It was a whole other thing when he was tied up and shoved onto cold stone.

What felt like half a mile of rope around his torso prevented him from lounging back like he usually did, and Jigen shuffled awkwardly. Trying to alleviate the pressure that was building on his knees without putting his back out was a stupidly delicate balance. The right leg was always worse, but the left still wasn’t happy with him as he bent and braced it by turns, looking for the position that hurt the least. Leaning against the wall didn’t do nearly enough to ease the pain spiking into all the non-muscle bits that made up a knee, ligaments and tendons with stupid long names, and Jigen finally gave up on trying to fix it alone. There was no way he was getting settled without help. With a faint groan whistling through his teeth, he nudged Goemon.

“Oi. Move your ass to the right for me, would you?”

“Why?” Goemon thankfully didn’t wait for an answer before he complied with Jigen’s grumbled request, shifting to the side and just a bit forward so he didn’t get _too_ cozied up to Fujiko; poor guy was already flustered by not having his sword. His voice dropped a touch. “Do you have a plan?”

“Yeah—a plan to get comfortable.”

Jigen slung his leg over Goemon’s and sighed deeply as the discomfort eased with the simple change in position; he basically melted into the stone, letting his skull thump against the wall. He wiggled around a bit, trying to find that sweet spot that would take the strain off his back too, and bit back a grin when Goemon automatically shifted his own leg to the perfect angle. On his other side, Lupin leaned into him. It wasn’t much, but his bony frame added extra warmth and support to Jigen’s posture.

It also hid Lupin’s hands from everyone else’s view.

With his knee comfortably supported by Goemon’s thigh, Jigen’s attention was free to focus on their current predicament. He glanced down, knowing that the brim of his hat concealed both his eyes and his line of sight. Lupin waggled his fingers from where they were tied behind his back and flashed a quick thumbs up, even as he continued to glare sulkily at the idiots with guns who had gotten the drop on them. It was an act for an unwitting audience, and Lupin knew that Jigen was watching from the wings for the backstage cues. Just like always. Slouching further down, Jigen smiled crookedly.

If he felt like betting on it, he’d bet the remains of his hat that the thief was going to pop a joint or two as soon as the goons weren’t paying attention. Then they’d all be on their feet again—and Lupin did his best thinking on those. They all did, really. The lot of them were old hands at taking things in stride. So until Jigen could get his hands back on the trigger of his magnum, he was going to focus on making sure he could be off and running the moment they were able. The last thing he needed was to be slowed down by his own damn knee.

Soon enough they’d get Laetitia and the Eclipse, and get the hell out. But not before the Nazis found out what a bad idea it was to mess with their ragtag group. They’d all make sure of that. Jigen in particular had a few scores to settle for the sake of his pride, and he knew Goemon would be itching to put Zantetsuken to proper use. Hell, even Pops would be raring to go after suffering the indignity of being tied up. There was only one criminal that got away with making Interpol look incompetent, and he was tied up too.

But they had a few minutes left before all that mayhem started, so until then…Jigen shrugged. Until then, he might as well enjoy being supported by his favourite people.

Even if one of them—and their wild ideas—was the main reason his knees were busted in the first place.

**Author's Note:**

> As someone with a lot of chronic pains and bad knees, I immediately connected with how Jigen was sitting in that scene. Having a support under a bad knee can make all the difference, so I projected my way into writing a fic.


End file.
